The Budget for 2022 shows how that Labour Party remains the “most credible force” to lead Malta, Prime Minister Robert Abela said in his post-Budget press conference outside Castille on Monday night.Abela emerged from Castille, flanked by...

In his reaction to the 2022 budget, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said that the government failed to present a budget with a clear strategy and direction. It instead presented a budget with no sense of credibility. In a press conference on Mon...

For a budget that is the last one to be presented during this legislature, this was certainly not your typical pre-election budget. Not that that is a bad thing. For pre-election budgets have become a thing of the past over the past seven or eight ye...

Another budget day – the ninth under a Labour administration – is upon us.Finance Minister Clyde Caruana will take to Parliament this evening to lay out the government’s economic plan for 2022 in what is his first budget speech.The ...

It was late on Christmas Eve last year when the European Union and Britain finally clinched a Brexit trade deal after years of wrangling, threats and missed deadlines to seal their divorce.There was hope that now-separated Britain and the 27-nation b...

As expected, constituted bodies gave their immediate reaction to the budget speech.Overall, there was positive feedback, particularly on social measures and others related to employment.But it was also pointed out that the budget failed to address th...

A woman was grievously injured on Monday afternoon when she was hit by a car, the police said.The accident happened in Sir Paul Boffa Avenua, Paola, at 2.45pm.The woman, aged 69 of Paola, was hit by a Suzuki Swift driven by a 34-year-old man of Tarxi...

Starting from October 2022, public transport will be made free to all residents of Malta and Gozo. This is the next step in tackling the problems of traffic congestion, the Finance Minister said.This would result in workers saving upwards of €30...

A 21-year-old Tarxien resident was arrested in connection to a store theft, the police said in a statement.During the night between Saturday and Sunday, a man had broken through a store door and stole a number of airsoft rifles, airsoft ammunition an...

Students across Malta and Gozo will benefit a 10% increase in their stipends. Those students who work up to 25 hours a week, will also benefit from this increase. These two measures will see a total investment of €5 million.The government is set...

The Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) will rise by €1.75 per week, as per the established formula. This increase will be given to all workers.In addition, the government said that it will start meeting stakeholders to discuss a new mechanism to h...

Some 95,000 pensioners, including retirees, disabled and others who receive a non-contributory pension will be getting a €5 weekly increase in their allotment, or €260 per year.This includes the €1.75 cost of living adjustment, which m...

The list of free medicines will continue to be extended as from next year.The list will include oncology treatment for cancer patients, treatment for osteoporosis (20,000 patients), blood circulation medicinals (7,000 patients), psychiatric medicine ...

The government has committed to an afforestation project in the Inwadar park that extends from Xghajra to Zonqor in Marsascala. This project will see tens of thousands of trees planted.The project will make this a woodland area bigger than Buskett, t...

The government has announced tax relief measures when purchasing certain types of properties.Stamp Duty and Capital Gains tax will be removed on the first €750,000 when selling and purchasing one of the following property types: Those built more...

Malta is expected to recover more quickly from the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The government is forecasting a real growth of 6.5% and 8.6% in nominal terms in 2022, while the growth is expected to be 4.7% and 4.5% in 2023 and 2024.The...

Additional facilities will be rented out at Mater Dei Hospital to address the growing demand for acute and elective services in the most efficient and effective way.Despite the challenges Malta faced during the global pandemic, the government remaine...

The waiting list for social accommodation has been brought down to fewer than 1,800 persons, while the number of new applications has dropped by more than a half.This has happened after 700 social accommodation apartments were distributed by the Hous...

The government plans to build on the positive results the EcoHive group of projects has achieved given that the year 2021 was the best year in terms of recycling in its 19 years of existence.The waste-to-energy plant which forms part of the EcoHive p...

Following on the introduction of the agency responsible for food, the government plans to develop further the national policies for a strong food chain across the island.In order to incentivise the increase of land used for farming and also increase ...

A new income tax rate of 7.5% for artists will be introduced from basis year 2022.For the purpose of artists’ income tax, the government will introduce a mechanism that sets artists’ income over an average of 3 years.The government will b...

The Attorney General’s Office will be given additional prosecution functions in coordination with the police, the Finance Minister announced.This will be in line with a view to developing a specialised prosecution service in the Attorney’...

The government is carrying out work on drastically reducing the number of people living in the Marsa migrant centre. This process is at an advanced stage with the aim of completely shutting down the centre.  Among the measures the government has...

Malta obtained a dramatic 97th minute equaliser against Cyprus through substitute Jurgen Degabriele to earn its fifth point in the World Cup qualifying group.The result also leaves Mangia’s side just above Cyprus in the standings, with two matc...

As Germany became the first country to qualify for the 2022 World Cup, its former under-21 team coach was crying tears of joy after his first win in charge of Turkey.Stefan Kuntz was unable to keep his emotions in check after Burak Yilmaz’s pen...

A worker was critically injured after marble slabs fell on him, the police said.The accident took place in a factory at the Hal Far industrial estate on Monday at 2.30pm.The worker, a 21-year-old Eritrean who lives in Birzebbuga, was taken to hospita...

Eleven new Covid-19 cases were registered on Monday, while 22 patients have recovered.Health authorities said that seven patients are receiving treatment in hospital, one of whom is in intensive care.The number of active cases has now dropped to 270,...

Sachets containing drugs were found buried in soil in a garden in Marsa, police said today.In a post on Facebook, the police said that following several reports received in connection with irregularities which were allegedly taking place in Hamrun an...

A police inspector has testified that perjury investigations following the Egrant inquiry were not limited to Jonathan Ferris, but also included Karl Cini and Maria Efimova.Police Inspector Matthew Vella took the stand in the case filed against Ferri...

While residents near the sites of metro stations would feel some vibrations during the excavation stage, “it is not expected that they will feel any vibrations while trains are in operation,” a spokesperson for the Transport Ministry told...

Thorough and detailed geological studies must be undertaken for the metro proposal to ensure safety and minimise the disturbance to residents above, geologist Peter Gatt told The Malta Independent.The government recently published a study for a metro...

Three Ford pick-ups F450, a Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV, a Jaguar F-pace and a Ford Expedition SUV, all stolen from Canada, were intercepted by Customs at the Freeport. The scanning equipment of the Department proved to be very valuable to the Custo...

The Sliema local council said today has not paid for electricity bills running into tens of thousands of euros for public places, such as gardens and the promenade, which are owned by the Lands Authority.In a statement on Monday, the council said tha...

The government will announce the country’s budget for 2022 this evening in Parliament.This will be Finance Minister Clyde Caruana’s first budget, after taking over the post from the previous minister, Edward Scicluna.Over the past month, ...

The defence of Bojan Cmelik, the Serbian bartender accused of murdering Hugo Chetcuti, has rested after a brief address to jurors by lawyer Simon Micallef Stafrace, in which he argued that Chetcuti’s death was, at least in part, the responsibil...

Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg said this morning that the plans for a proposed metro in Malta have now been published in full.This comes after the government, on 2 October, launched the idea of a metro system with three lines and 25 stations, a pro...

Most potholes and cracks in local roads are a result of trenching joints from the process of laying new underground water, electricity, wastewater or telecommunication networks, or to repair existing ones, an Infrastructure Malta spokesperson told Th...

Left-leaning Italian lawmakers and politicians on Sunday called for measures to outlaw pro-fascism groups a day after anti-vaccine protesters, incited by extreme-right leaders, stormed a union office in Rome.Twelve protesters were either detained or ...

A biker was grievously injured in a traffic accident in Victoria on Sunday evening, the police said.The accident, involving a Honda bike and a Toyota Ractis, took place in Europe Street at 8.45pm.The biker, a 34-year-old man from Xaghra, was taken to...

British police have announced they will not take any action against Prince Andrew after a review prompted by a Jeffrey Epstein accuser who claims that he sexually assaulted her.Virginia Giuffre claims she was trafficked by Epstein to have sex with An...

At the age of eight, Laurent Martinez was sexually abused by a priest. Forty years later, he has chosen to make his story into a play, to show the devastating consequences and how speaking out can help victims heal and rebuild.The play called “...

Four to eight suicides have been prevented every day since Crisis Resolution Malta (CRM) launched their mental health awareness billboard campaign last month, psychiatrist and organisation leader Mark Xuereb told The Malta Independent on Sunday....

The unveiling of the budget for the year 2022 is upon us. Finance Minister Clyde Caruana will, this evening, stand up in Parliament and present what will be his first budget speech.It is also the last budget before the next general election. The coun...

PL backbencher Silvio Grixti was on the receiving end of a direct order worth €37,200 from Transport Malta, data published in the Government Gazette shows.Grixti, a family doctor by profession, was given the direct order for “consultancy f...

Transport Malta dished out a massive 350 direct orders, worth a total of €13.6 million, in the first six months of 2021, data published in the Government Gazette shows.Amongst those were some familiar names, particularly in those who received di...

The government has launched the idea of an underground system that is intended to provide an alternative means of transportation to thousands of commuters and, in so doing, hopefully ease the traffic congestion on our roads.The proposal is to have th...

Kylian Mbappé scored late as world champion France came from behind to win the Nations League with a 2-1 victory over Spain in the final on Sunday.Mbappé netted with 10 minutes remaining as France was again forced to fight back, just as...

The newly-proposed metro system is a modular network so it can be extended as demand grows, the Transport Ministry told The Malta Independent on Sunday. The metro system proposal was announced last week by government together with a London-based firm...

Restaurants are being impacted by rising costs, Matthew Pace, secretary of the Association of Catering Establishment (ACE) told The Malta Independent on Sunday.This newsroom received some concerns regarding a number of catering establishments having ...

24 new cases of Covid-19 were registered on Sunday, as six people recovered, the health authorities said.This brings the number of active cases up to 281.Currently, 7 people are being treated at Mater Dei Hospital, one of whom is in the ITU839,636 do...

European champion Italy bounced back from its first loss in more than three years to beat Belgium 2-1 in the Nations League's third-place match on Sunday.Nicolò Barella opened the scoring at the start of the second half and Domenico Berardi do...

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic resulting in a global upsurge of mental health challenges, it has also had a “silver lining”; that of reducing the stigma around mental illness, leading psychiatrist, Anton Grech told The Malta Independent on...

Despite poor performance in the polls, Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech has asked PN supporters to pluck up courage for the election and said that there are 80,000 people not reflected in electoral polling.During a press conference on Sunday, h...

Valtteri Bottas scored his first win of the season Sunday at Turkish Grand Prix, a mixed day for Mercedes when Max Verstappen reclaimed the overall championship lead from title rival Lewis Hamilton.Hamilton started 11th because of a 10-place grid pen...

16 social work entities have expressed their concern over the proposed cannabis reform bill, a statement by the Curia has read."The organisations find themselves in agreement with the positions of Caritas Malta and the OASI Foundation, that the propo...

The budget for the year 2022 was designed with the people, for the people, Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Sunday during a brief phone interview on ONE Radio.Abela was asked about the budget set to be presented on Monday evening. He described it ...

Actress Marica Cassar would love to live in the mountains, where she would have lots of space to take care of animals. She has been to several music concerts abroad, but not of her favourite singer. Marica, who also serves as press officer of Caritas...

ADPD-The Green Party has submitted requests in terms of the FOI legislation to both Transport Malta and the Transport Ministry to release all studies carried out by consultants ARUP, and others, relative to the Metro proposal, the party said in a sta...

Government last week announced a proposed €6bn metro project and the country went into a frenzy. Suddenly, our “dream” of having an underground system, similar to the ones we love to use when travelling in foreign cities, became clos...

Thousands of demonstrators marched down Rome's famous Via Veneto and other streets on Saturday, some smashing their way into a union office and clashing with police as they protested Italy's new “Green Pass” vaccination requirement for em...

Guards at a Libyan detention center for migrants shot and killed at least six people amid chaos in the overcrowded facility, U.N. officials said Saturday as they again condemned widespread abuses against migrants in the North African country.The deve...

Prime Minister Andrej Babis' centrist party on Saturday narrowly lost the Czech Republic's parliamentary election, a surprise development that could mean the end of the populist billionaire's reign in power.The two-day election to fill 200 seats in t...

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said Saturday that he will step down in a bid to defuse a government crisis triggered by prosecutors' announcement that he is a target of a corruption investigation.Kurz, 35, said he has proposed to Austria's presid...

Sixteen new Covid-19 cases were found on Saturday, while 35 patients have recovered, the health authorities said.This takes the number of cases registered in Malta to 37,325, with 36,194 recoveries.The number of deaths has remained at 459, while the ...

A new government strategy published on Saturday aims to address and minimise the waste generated by construction and demolition in Malta in a holistic manner.The strategy was announced by Environment, Climate Change and Planning Minister Aaron Farrug...

The monument dedicated for former President Ċensu Tabone and a historic fountain do not appear anywhere in the initial designs for the Balluta metro station as revealed last week.The monument, situated in one of the corners of the triangular ope...

Valletta: Collis Williams Pharmacy, 15, Republic Street; Ħamrun: The Cross Pharmacy, 859, St Joseph High Road; Qormi: Anici Pharmacy, Anici Street; Birkirkara: Mint Care Pharmacy, 5B-71 Brared Street; Msida: Mayer Pharmacy, 33, Ta’ Xbiex P...

A teenager was critically injured after falling three storeys into a shaft, the police said.The accident took place in a residence in Tempesta Street, Qrendi, at 6pm on Friday.The boy, aged 15, was taken to hospital with serious injuries.Magistrate M...

Denmark added to the most perfect campaign in World Cup qualifying on Saturday and England also eased toward winning its group.Wins for Scotland, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine moved each closer to at least a place in the playoffs next year ...

No, your eyes aren’t playing tricks on you, and no we haven’t been hacked – what you’re seeing above translates from Korean to ‘Public Broadcasting Services.’The inspiration for our recently developed knowledge of ...

Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia promised that “all necessary environmental studies would be conducted” before the metro project is given the go-ahead.The government last week proposed a metro project that will cost around €6.2 bi...

A biker was grievously injured in a traffic accident in Birkirkara on Friday, the police said.The accident took place in Fleur-de-Lys Road at 6pm.The biker, a man aged 38 of Xghajra, was riding a Suzuki DL650 which was involved in a crash with a Rena...

When one considers all the known information, the metro proposal is not suitable, creates too many environmental problems and is a threat to both existing public spaces and our historical heritage, Carmel Cacopardo ADPD-The Green Party Chairperson, s...

Minister for Social Accommodation Roderick Galdes announced the strategy for the allocation of social housing.At a conference held on Friday evening, Minister Roderick Galdes announced that recently the Housing Authority has begun a process of alloca...

Moviment Graffitti today called on the Minister for Agriculture and the Cabinet of Ministers to intervene and put an end to the eviction of farmers from leased agricultural lands they have been tilling for decades.In a statement, the activist group n...

Russia’s daily coronavirus death toll hit a new record on Friday amid the country’s sluggish vaccination rate and the government’s reluctance to tighten restrictions.Russia’s state coronavirus task force reported 936 new death...

MALTA …………………………. 0SLOVENIA …………………….. 4Malta: H. Bonello, K. Shaw, J. Mbong (A. Magri Overend 68’), L. Montebello (J....

Parliamentary Secretary Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi announced new cut-off dates till March 2022 for the Business Enhance ERDF Grant Schemes, which give small and medium-sized enterprises the opportunity to expand their operations while incentivising more...

Lewis Hamilton mitigated the damage from his 10-place grid penalty at the Turkish Grand Prix by posting the fastest time in Saturday qualifying. It should have given the world champion his record-extending 102nd Formula One pole, but it didn't count ...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has confirmed that Pope Francis will be visiting Malta sometime in the first quarter of 2022. The Pope’s visit had been planned for December but was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Sources suggested that...

The father of a prison inmate who died by suicide last July has filed Constitutional proceedings against the State, claiming that a prison guard had helped his daughter kill herself.Martin Nicholas Borg Virtu’ filed an application before the Fi...

The Ministry for Equality, Research and Innovation, the University of Malta and the Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry have committed to strengthening and incentivising research at the University at Post-Doctoral level in collaboration with...

Glen Farrugia, the building contractor accused of dumping an employee who suffered spinal injuries in a fall on the side of the road, has been released on bail.Glen Farrugia, 31, one of two shareholders and a director of the company J&G Farrugia ...

The frayed nerves and raw emotion of murdered entrepreneur Hugo Chetcuti’s extended family were evident this morning as his brother in law took the stand to tell the jury trying Bojan Cmelik for Chetcuti’s killing about Cmelik’s emp...

24 new Covid-19 cases were reported by health authorities as the number of patients in hospital remained in single digits.13 people have recovered, and with no new deaths reported, the number of active cases currently stands at 282.8 patients –...

The Secretariat for Catholic Education (SfCE) and the Church Schools Association (CSA) has expressed serious concerns at the direction taken by government to "rush through a bill on cannabis use at the tail end of this legislature."The government rec...

Some 400 employees of the Foundation for Social Welfare Services have found out that their employer failed to pay their social security contributions between 2000 and 2007, Voice of the Workers Weekly reported. The missing contributions amount to aro...

Former Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia will contest the seventh district, apart from his hometown on the eighth.The decision was taken unanimously by the party executive, Delia announced on his Facebook page.This brings to an end speculation ab...

The Gozo Chamber of Advocates has been set up to represent the interests of lawyers based in Gozo.In a statement, the Chamber said that this is an important step for lawyers who practice on the island, to ensure that their rights are safeguarded.Curr...

Archaeologists excavating at Tas-Silġ in Marsaxlokk have discovered the remains of another Neolithic structure. The newly-unearthed structure, still being excavated, has substantially increased the footprint of the land used in the Neolithic per...

The Netherlands is back in control of its World Cup qualifying group but hardly in convincing style.A 1-0 win over Latvia with a volley from Davy Klaassen lacked the swagger from last month's 6-1 dismantling of Turkey. Still, it was enough to build a...

The emergency phone number 112 is back to normal after a few hours of being unavailable due to technical issues, police said in a media statement on Friday afternoon.The police had initially appealed to the public to phone on 119 in the case of an em...

A new Council for the Malta Developers Association was appointed during its annual general meeting.Denise Micallef Xuereb was appointed as Vice-President, Michael Stivala was appointed as Secretary General, Alfred Camilleri was appointed as Treasurer...

In a bid to meet climate change goals, all ministries, government entities and agencies have pledged to obtain all goods and services in accordance to the green public procurement procedures by 2027. Announcing the new green criteria on Friday, ...

A man who threatened PN MP Karol Aquilina and his brother Robert, president of civil society group Repubblika, was fined and conditionally discharged on Friday.Sandro Farrugia had written in a Facebook post that the two “deserved a good beating...

The British government said Thursday that it is to relax travel rules further next week, a move that will open up many long-distance holiday destinations to travelers for the first time since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic a year and half ago....

Former energy minister Konrad Mizzi on Wednesday brazenly refused to appear before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, where he was set to be grilled over his role in the scandalous power station deal. That Mizzi chose to go down the path o...

Journalists Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov of Russia won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their fight for freedom of expression in countries where media outlets have faced persistent attacks.The Norwegian Nobel Co...

32-year-old Lamin Jaiteh was first abandoned on the road by his boss following a two-storey fall before crawling his way onto the pavement for some safety. Jaiteh testified in court on Thursday from his hospital bed, as he is being treated for s...